Eye on London, Bolt readies for February opener

The world will not need to wait long to get a glimpse at triple Olympic champion Usain Bolt’s fitness for his highly anticipated 2012 season.

The world will not need to wait long to get a glimpse at triple Olympic champion Usain Bolt’s fitness for his highly anticipated 2012 season.

Healthy and on a new nutrition program, Bolt plans to launch his run-up to defending his 100 and 200 metres titles at the 2012 London Games with tune-up races in Jamaica next month. “I always run quarters (400s) before the season and I will be starting in February,” Bolt said in a telephone interview from Kingston.

“I think I will run at least two this season.”

An injury slowed the launch of Bolt’s 2011 season until May, but previously he had always made test runs in late January or February to break up training. But aside from a false start that cost him a chance to defend his 100 metres world title, the world record holder said he was pleased with the way his year ended. “I came back at the world championships and I won a medal, I ran a fast time and I was unbeaten,” said the lanky Jamaican who successfully defended his world 200 metres crown and anchored Jamaica to a world record in the 4x100 metres relay.

When he will run his first sprint test of 2011 or meet up with training partner and 100 metres world champion Yohan Blake has not been determined, Bolt said. Any race against Blake, the hot new sprinter who not only claimed the 100m world title but ran the second fastest 200m of all-time last season, would be a spectator’s delight.

But Bolt did not to attach special significance to any potential meeting. “For me, it is all the same with everybody,” said Bolt, who at 25 is three years older than Blake. “It is a job. So if I have got to go out there and race against Yohan, it is OK.”